The central Oregon coast village of Yachats will host its 18th annual Village Mushroom Fest this weekend and all “fun-guys and fun-gals” are invited.

On Saturday and Sunday mushroom cuisine will continue to be highlighted, as well as culinary mushroom markets (wild and cultivated, fresh and dried), mushrooms tools, specialty products, arts and crafts, and books.

Mushroom Displays will be presented by three mycological societies – Lincoln County Mycological Society, Cascade Mycological Society, and North American Truffling Society at the Yachats Lions Hall on W 4th St (one block off Hwy 101). Admission is free.

A Speakers’ Forum is offered Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. with presentations by renowned experts in the field of mycology including Dr. Dan Luoma, Dr. Steve Carpenter, David Pilz, Dr. Matt Trappe, and Dr. Charles LeFevre.

Saturday 11:15 a.m.
Webs of Symbiosis: seeing the forest beyond the trees
Dr. Dan Luoma, Dept. of Forest Ecosystems & Society, OSU
In the life of a forest, fungi are connected to a wide variety of plants and animals, above-ground and below-ground. The presentation will focus on fungi in their roles of contributing to that interconnectedness and how they facilitate resiliency in forest ecosystems.
Saturday 12:30 p.m.

How to Collect and Identify Wild Mushrooms Dr. Steven Carpenter
The Pacific Northwest is a wonderful place to collect and consume wild edible mushrooms, and their collection has become increasingly popular over the years. It is important to know how to identify mushrooms for safe consumption and how to collect them in a way that does not harm their environment. In this presentation you will learn what mushrooms are, where to find them, the best ways to collect them and the basics in identification.

Saturday 1:45 p.m. Mexican Mycophilia and Mycophagy: A travelogue from the 9th International Workshop on Edible Mycorrhizal Mushrooms. David Pilz, PilzWald (Forestry Applications of Mycology)

The ancient Olmec, Mayan and Aztec cultures of central America comprise a major independent origin of human civilization. In a manner that was unique among early civilizations elsewhere in the world, mushrooms played important roles in dietary, symbolic, ritual and religious aspects of daily life. The diversity of tree species and habitats in the high elevation cloud forests of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt and elsewhere in central America host habitats for a wide diversity of edible and entheogenic mushrooms. Although most of the ancient codices and other glyphic records of mushroom use were destroyed by conquering Spaniards, native communities retain rich traditions of mushroom harvesting and culinary use to this day. Some communities have indigenous names for hundreds of edible mushrooms which they harvest and eat with relish. Join David for a travelogue that provides a glimpse of these rich cultural traditions. (Before this presentation you can catch David’s book signing in Rm. 8.)

It is amazing how surrounded we are by lichens – they are so common we hardly notice them. This presentation, including photos, covers lichen basics and introduces the most common species that folks probably see every day.
At the Cape Perpetua Visitors Center, an ongoing Mushroom Slideshow will also be provided by Dr. Matt Trappe, and a slideshow presentation by Anna Moore will be offered Sunday morning at 11:00 a.m. covering the habitat of selected plants and fungi in the Oregon Dunes.
Demonstrations and a Workshop are also offered Saturday

Saturday, 11:30 a.m.
Yachats Commons Grounds
(Grassy lawn on the W side of Commons buildings)
Open to all with festival wristband. No pre-registration.
Truffle Dog Demonstration
Dr. Charles LeFevre
This demonstration will be preceded by Dr. LeFevre’s talk, Oregon is Truffle Country, which will be held in the multipurpose room of the Yachats Commons from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m.

Saturday 12:30 – 2:30 p.m. (Arrive 15 minutes early.)
Yachats Presbyterian Church, 360 7th St.
Show festival wristband. No pre-registration; seating first come, first serve. $3 Materials Fee collected at door. Please bring $1 bills.
Cooking with Mushrooms, Making the Most of Your Bounty
Pam McElroy & Anna Russo, Lincoln Co Mycological Society This workshop will focus on cooking with main choice edibles and guide you through delicious pairings. It will include information on individual wild mushrooms and the culinary companions to bring out the best in each species. Preservation will also be addressed. NOTE: Please remove shoes upon entering. Signs will be posted.

Saturday 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. (Arrive 15 minutes early.) Yachats Commons, Rm 8
(N side of the Yachats Commons)
Show festival wristband. No pre-registration.
$5 Materials Fee payable on site.
Please bring exact change. One bag limit per participant.
Grow Your Own Gourmet Mushrooms
Dr. Steven Carpenter and Kim Kittredge
3:00 p.m. Lecture/Slideshow
4:00 p.m. Workshop, Picnic Shelter
Dr. Steven Carpenter is back this year, joined by Kim Kittredge, to show you how to grow your own oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus spp.). You will be amazed how easy it is to grow gourmet mushrooms, and how much fun it is to do! You will attend a lecture/slideshow followed by a workshop where you make your own bag of pasteurized straw and inoculate it with the mushroom spawn provided. In a few short weeks it will sprout delicious oyster mushrooms! Each bag should produce enough for several meals.
The 4:00 p.m. workshop is open only to those also attending the 3:00 p.m. lecture / slideshow.

BOOK SIGNING
441 Hwy 101
12:30 p.m., Rm. 8 (N side of the Yachats Commons building)
David Pilz will introduce his novel, The Bog Maiden, “A supernatural romance served with a layered and aged mushrooms-of-immortality sauce.” According to David, he and his co-author, George McAdams, captured the spore for this novel over good wine and a campfire on the southern Oregon coast in May 2001, and Sporocarps (subsequent novels) are now in stages of research. Prepare to be entertained. People may purchase the novel at the festival for $10 (it’s $13.95 elsewhere) and have it signed by David! David will also be selling mushroom bandannas that he designed. Stop by and check out the design!
Guided mushroom walks Twenty guided mushroom walks will also be held during the weekend free of charge for all levels of learning, from beginning to advanced. Pre-registration is offered online from the festival web site and people may register for any remaining walks on Saturday in the main entry hall of the Yachats Commons, Hwy 101 and W 4th St.
$5 Festival Wristband “Purchase of a $5 Festival Wristband allows you admission to the talks and workshops and helps us meet production costs and sustain the festival,” says festival coordinator Bev Wilson. Wristbands will be available during festival weekend at the Yachats Commons, 441 Hwy 101, Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and all weekend at the Yachats Visitors Center, 241 Hwy 101.

The festival is produced by the Yachats Area Chamber of Commerce in coordination with local businesses and nonprofits, mycologists and mycological societies, and the Cape Perpetua Scenic Area.